


Awake (day 5-sleep deprivation)

by Only_Slightly_Obsessed (A_Stressed_Cupcake)



Series: Rémy's 2020 Multifandom Whumptober Works [5]
Category: The Haunting of Hill House (TV 2018)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Insomnia, Multi, Nell Crain jr is mentioned and she is lovely, Parental Love, Sibling Love, Whumptober 2020, but this one's more chill i promise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2020-10-10
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:07:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26934109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/A_Stressed_Cupcake/pseuds/Only_Slightly_Obsessed
Summary: Steven is awake._____Whumptober 2020- day 5: sleep deprivation
Relationships: Leigh Crain/Steven Crain, Shirley Crain/Kevin Harris, Theodora "Theo" Crain/Trish Park, the crains/insomnia
Series: Rémy's 2020 Multifandom Whumptober Works [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1965271
Kudos: 47
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	Awake (day 5-sleep deprivation)

**Author's Note:**

> no cws, this is fluffier than anticipated

Steven is awake. 

And little Nell can't be blamed for it, because she's a quiet baby. She cries so little, so quietly; the envy of the other parents, who tell him the same things every time ( _ I wish my child was like your Nellie sometimes! _ ).

He, too, has found himself wishing people would be more like his Nellie. Which one, it doesn't matter. They're so similar that he sometimes questions whether Nell Crain Sr. has decided to reincarnate into the child named after her.

Nellie's always so quiet. She doesn't cry, or babble, or scream as much as other babies do.

It's hardly a blessing.

It terrifies him.

Silence terrifies him, and babies… well, babies are meant to be loud, aren't they? Loud and dirty, squishy little things that rely on their parents' love to grow. 

Steven wants so badly to hold Nell to his chest until she's grown up, and keep her at arm's length even then. He hasn't been able to turn down a phone call ever since Hill House. 

Like he does every night, when the silence gets to him, he gets up, quietly, tucking the blankets around Leigh's bare shoulders so she doesn't get cold.

The floor feels like ice under his feet, but it takes one look at Nell to warm his heart. He just sits there, guarding her until she needs something, so Leigh can get the sleep she deserves.

Steven is awake.

Shirley is awake. 

Not from nightmares, not this time. She simply woke up at 4 in the morning and couldn't fall asleep again.

So, swaddled tight in a comforter she snuck out of Kevin's closet, she sits outside on her porch.

There's an empty space beside her.

Oh, sure, Theo is doing so much better now. She looks happier every time she sees her. Shirley can still see her face glowing with joy when Trish walked down the aisle in her little white dress.

Trish is a lovely girl. The kids love her dearly, and they always want to touch her tattoos, and see her old textbooks, and talk to her about Auntie Theo. She is honestly a blessing to have around.

But that doesn't mean she can't miss Theo.

Their late night talks on the porch over a beer or maybe whiskey were something that Shirley secretly treasured as their own little Sister Thing. She had a Thing with each of her siblings, of course, but the talks with Theo were probably her favourite.

Theo is remarkably insightful in conversation. 

She sighs and takes another sip of her spiked hot chocolate.

Shirley is awake.

Theo is awake.

The quiet, rhythmic sound of her wife's breathing usually works wonders to make her fall asleep, but not this time. There's just something keeping her awake.

She's tried scrolling through Instagram, having a drink, reading through her patient files, even writing a diary page, but she feels as awake as ever. More than before, actually.

With a heavy (but quiet, Trish needs her beauty sleep) sigh, she stumbles out the door and into the backyard.

It helps her to sit outside with a drink. Even without Shirley, although Shirley would be the cherry on top right now. 

It's almost funny, how it took losing one of her sisters and nearly losing the other to realize how much they mean to her. Meant. Well, she's doing good now. Trish is wonderful, Steven and Leigh have a baby, her nephew and nieces are growing fast, Luke is three years clean, and Shirley and Kevin are going as strong as ever.

It's almost perfect.

But it's that  _ almost  _ that keeps her up, that little slice of unhappiness that they can't get rid of.

Still, it's alright.

They're doing so much better than three years ago. Thriving, even.

She curls up in a lawn chair with a glass of whiskey and silently cheers with Shirley.

Theo is awake.

Luke is awake. 

He always is. And it's not withdrawal anymore. It hasn't been withdrawal in three years.

They're going to celebrate his fourth year clean in a few months. It's become a sort of tradition, one that keeps him going through those momentary cravings that threaten to send him spiraling into a relapse. He always remembers that hey, in a few months, or weeks, or days, Steven is going to go to a bakery and order a cake just for him. And God, Steven knows exactly what kind of cake he likes. It's never the same but every year, without fail, it's delicious. Maybe that's Steven's psychic power, he jokes to himself. 

Thinking about cake got him craving some chocolate, in all honesty.

Thankfully, he still has the remnants of a box he bought last Halloween to give trick-or-treaters. Little pralines with an orange wrapping, mimicking a Jack-O'-Lantern.

Maybe Allie and Jayden will want one. Tomorrow, after school, as a treat. In the meantime, he can have one just for himself.

He discards the wrapping and pops the praline in his mouth, humming with pleasure.

He woke up in a surprisingly good mood and he's not going to waste it.

Pulling the curtains back to let the first rays of sun in, he spots a lone figure on the porch.

Shirley.

Maybe she would like a chocolate too.

Bag of chocolates in hand, Luke joins his big sister on the porch. Shirley accepts the candy with a tired smile and makes some space for him under her comforter.

They stay there and watch the dawn together, wordlessly.

Luke is awake.

Shirley is awake.

Theo is awake.

Steven is awake.

Nellie is awake.

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so this may be stretching the prompt but technically they're not sleeping and they're so gonna feel this in the morning.  
> Plus all these poor kids deserve happiness and a break. And chocolate! Maybe Luke can get them all some more.
> 
> -Rémy


End file.
